Volvo Cars to open first US plant in South Carolina

Swedish automaker Volvo Cars' first plant in the United States will roll out its first car in 2018 and aims to produce 100,000 vehicles per year, it said on Monday.

Volvo, which was sold to China's Geely in 2010, said it had chosen South Carolina for the site of its $500-million (448-million-euro) factory.

The Swedish brand, which has been doing business in the US since 1955, announced in late March that it would open its first factory in the US in a bid to increase its market share, which was less than 0.4 percent in 2014.

The plant, to be built in Berkeley County close to Charleston, will employ up to 4,000 people in the long term, Volvo said.

"Once completed, Volvo will be able to manufacture cars on three continents, underscoring its position as a truly global car maker," it said.

"The new US plant forms part of an ambitious medium term expansion plan to double global sales, boost market share and lift profitability," it added.

Volvo currently has two plants in Europe -- in Gothenburg, Sweden, and Ghent, Belgium -- and two in China, in Chengdu and Chongqing. It also has two other smaller plants in China and Malaysia.

Volvo registered two years of losses before returning to profit in the second half of 2013.

In 2014, it beat its sales record in place since 2007, selling 466,000 cars.